RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Gardner’s hydrodynamic theory of syringomyelia revisited
JF Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine
JO Cleve Clin J Med
FD Cleveland Clinic
SP 373
OP 380
VO 59
IS 4
A1 Prem K. Pillay
A1 Issam A. Awad
A1 Joseph F. Hahn
YR 1992
UL http://www.ccjm.org/content/59/4/373.abstract
AB Several theories have been put forth to explain the pathogenesis of syringomyelia, the formation of longitudinal, fluid-filled cavities within the spinal cord. Chief among them is Gardner’s hydrodynamic theory, widely accepted for more than two decades. Gardner attributed the genesis of syringomyelia to craniospinal pressure differentials in the setting of fourth ventricular outlet obstruction; these differentials favor cerebrospinal fluid shifts from the fourth ventricle of the brain through the central canal of the spinal cord. Gardner’s theory has been questioned, and several alternative theories of syringomyelia have been proposed. Physiological data and new information from magnetic resonance imaging support many of Gardner’s concepts; however, a more comprehensive elucidation of the pathophysiologic mechanisms of syringomyelia requires incorporating facets of the other theories. We propose a unified theory of the pathogenesis of syringomyelia based on recent experience with magnetic resonance imaging, and on elements of other current theories.